Bulls seeking a “return” to success

Posted Oct 15, 2011 by Adam Adkins

Updated Oct 14, 2011 at 11:47 PM

It was an area of strength for the University of South Florida football team in 2010, but five games into this season the Bulls are still working to get their kickoff return game and primary return man Lindsey Lamar untracked.

Entering Saturday’s game at Connecticut, the Bulls rank 115th out of 120 Football Bowl Subdivision programs and last in the Big East Conference in kickoff returns with an average of just 17.6 yards per return. That’s 5 yards fewer than USF averaged last season.

USF coach Skip Holtz knows the special teams unit needs to perform better, but after watching tape of the Bulls’ previous games he gets a sense that things could be on the upswing.

“We’re close. I certainly don’t feel like it’s broke,” Holtz said. “It’s frustrating more than it is disheartening. It’s not like it’s you’re just discouraged because you can’t get anything going.

“You go back and you watch film, there’s five or six where you’re just one block away. One guy gets his face crossed, and if he doesn’t get his face crossed you’ve got Lindsey on the kicker running down the field and you’ve got a big return.”

Players on the special teams unit haven’t let the failure to break a big one get them down, he said.

“I think it’s there. We’ve just got to get that much more determined, being as close as we are,” Holtz said. “We can’t get discouraged, and we’ve just got to keep working on it to give (Lamar) an opportunity.”

Lamar was a huge threat in the return game last season, averaging 26.4 yards per return and setting a school record with 899 kickoff return yards on his way to being named Big East Conference special teams player of the year. He had two returns for touchdowns, a 94-yarder against Syracuse and a school-record-tying 100-yarder against Louisville.

This season, however, Lamar hasn’t had the same impact. He’s averaging 18.4 yards on 19 returns, with a long of 31.

“I’m confident in our coaches and I’m confident in the players we’ve got on the team that are on the special teams. I know it is real close,” Lamar said. “Patience is a virtue. I’m not really worried about it, because I know it’s going to come real soon.”

Special teams coach Vernon Hargreaves believes Lamar might have snuck up on some teams last season, but now that everyone is aware of what he’s capable of, it has made things a bit tougher. Hargreaves gave credit to opposing teams for how they’ve limited the Bulls’ kickoff return unit, but he believes it’s more an issue of what his unit is not doing to help spring Lamar free.

“It just goes back to everybody working – 10 guys working their butt off (blocking) for 15, 20 seconds. Unfortunately, we’ve had eight or nine,” Hargreaves said. “Guys are still working, but that’s really what it boils down to in a nutshell. So we’re going to continue to work at it and hopefully get that back up.”

USF’s chances in the kickoff return game could be minimal Saturday. Connecticut specialist Chad Christen has sent nearly a third of his kickoffs into the end zone for a touchback (nine of 30), including all four in last week’s loss to West Virginia.

But when the Huskies have allowed the ball to be returned, opponents have taken advantage. Connecticut ranks 67th nationally in kickoff return yardage allowed, and three teams in the last four games have had returns of 30-plus yards.

The Bulls aim to capitalize on any chance that may be presented.

“When we get an opportunity,” Hargreaves said, “we’ve got to try and make it happen.”